The girls were given a tour of the gallery by presenter, Elham Salari, who asked each student to choose their favourite works. She then encouraged them to discuss the techniques and visual strategies used by the artists. Afterwards, they investigated the use of CMYK colour-separated transparencies as a way of exploring visual storytelling through layering.

The girls enjoyed the experience and talked about their learning:

“The trip was certainly beneficial. It was interesting to see the work of local photographers. The discussions we had as a group helped to broaden my knowledge on the photographs as well as investigate ideas and techniques we could use in our own photography.”

Bridgette Haldane

“The whole experience was incredibly useful, as well as inspiring because seeing images in person and working with the layering later on, reignited the passion behind taking this subject. Just talking about different messages expressed through the pieces on exhibit was also really helpful for my own work.”

Georgia Mansell

“Getting to see what other New Zealand photographers do with their work was inspiring. Having to see their artwork made me really connect to some of them because of the way they had been presented. Working with the different coloured sheets for the different images taught me a lot. The trip as a whole really broadened my knowledge about the photography world.”

Alex Woodmass

“To observe and learn how people use photography from a little place like Hawke’s Bay was eye opening. Being able to discuss each technique gave me great insight and helped me make links to benefit my own work. Creating my own art in a short workshop was a great learning opportunity that will be helpful in future work, both in design and photography.”

Ava Bake

“The exhibition was full of amazing pieces of work by many famous New Zealand artists such as Anne Nobel, Glenn Busch, Ans Westra and many others. It was inspirational and very relevant to the work we are doing in class. We were all asked to choose our favourite two pieces and discuss them. I found that when we discussed these ideas, our knowledge from the classroom came flowing out. We also took part in a workshop where we were able to play around with different layering of photos to create our own image. Overall, I found this experience gave us many different perspectives on photography and helped to develop ideas and talking points.”